I recently interviewed Chris Brogan at the Detroit Zoo in Michigan and we discussed the topic, ‘So you want to be like Chris Brogan?’ I thought this would create a lively conversation with all the discussion on defining EXPERTS and fabricated followership (people gaming the system to inorganically add followership in Twitter and other social networks.)
Anybody with access to a high-speed internet connection has heard of social media guru Chris Brogan, author of the New York Times Best-Seller “Trust Agents.” After talking with Chris there were four big ideas that surfaced that I wanted to share with you that I think will impact your personal brand.
Four Big Ideas to Remember in Developing Your Personal Brand
• There is no Race – Most people focus on racing or competing against others to measure or define success in life, professionally, and in their career. Personal branding is first personal you have to personally and internally assess who you are and your objectives. Professionals always compete against themselves versus competing against others. People who occupy the same space that you want to compete in should be used as potential benchmarks. Only amateurs look externally to define who they are internally.
• Trademark Yourself – A trademark authorizes you as legal owner of the mark/signature that represents your idea which can be renewed as long as it is being used in commerce. Most people focus on being a cheap copy and try to duplicate someone else’s brand/signature versus being original. Trying to be someone else is costly. Focus on being the best you.
• Decide Where do you put your Juice - Everybody has the same amount of time in their day 24 hours, @GaryVee, Oprah, Bill Gates, etc.. The goal becomes to be more effective in the usage of your time and energy. You increase the value of your minute and your personal brand by deciding on the right place to put your juice (time and energy).
• Overnight Success – This is a misnomer, but the saying is true there is a such thing as an overnight success. The problem is that most people interpret it to mean that it is instant and it is not. Overnight success is typically years of overnights and then people who didn’t know you were practicing and preparing all of a sudden see the result of your practice.
In the world of online brand identity it is very easy to rip other people’s ideas, copy content, and artificially add followers, but remember influence can’t be bought. Be the best you that you can be.
